Both Australia and New Zealand have built a “strong self-contained” soft drinks industry, with specific product, brand and packaging preferences, according to research from global beverage market research organisation Canadean. Energy drinks in particular are a growing sector in Australia and New Zealand. Canadean said that energy drinks volumes have more than quadrupled across Australia and New Zealand in the past ten years, and continue to expand, albeit it at a lesser rate. According to Canadean,... ...Read more »

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced that it will investigate the safety of caffeine in food products, particularly its effects on children and adolescents. The investigation is a response by the food safety authority to a growing trend in the US for caffeine-added food products, and the announcement came just weeks after confectionary company Wrigley’s began promoting a new chewing gum that contains caffeine. Launching the new caffeine-added gum, Alert Energy Caffeine Gum, in... ...Read more »

Drinking one 12 ounce (about 336ml) serving size of sugar-sweetened soft drink a day can be enough to increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 22 per cent, a new UK study has found. The risk increases by 22 per cent with each extra soft drink consumed. The research, published in Diabetologia (the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes), found that the increased risk of diabetes among sugar-sweetened soft drink consumers in Europe is similar to that found in a recent... ...Read more »

Sales of bottled water will overtake carbonates as the leading global soft drinks category in the next two years, according to data from beverage market research company Canadean. Canadean said the global trend toward bottled water is being bolstered by its healthy image, as well as necessity in areas of the world that are lacking alternative safe water supplies. Asia The main driver behind the category re-positioning is coming from Asia, according to Canadean. Volume sales in Asia are predicted... ...Read more »

Limiting the sale of soft drinks to small sizes could actually increase consumption, rather than decrease it, says a new US study published on 10 April 2013 open-access academic research site PLOS ONE. The researchers from the University of California found that participants in a behavioural test study consumed significantly more soft drink when they were able to buy it in bundles of two servings. The study’s authors, Brent M. Wilson, Stephanie Stolarz-Fantino and Edmund Fantino, said that the... ...Read more »

Soft drink brand Fanta Australia has launched a new campaign called the Fanta Flavour Lab, which is asking Australians to name their favourite combinations of Fanta flavours. At the heart of the campaign is a Fanta Flavour Lab mobile phone app, where users will be able to play drink-mixing-inspired games, earn Fanta ‘tokens’ and compete for prizes, including mobile phones with Fanta branded cases. “The Fanta Flavour Lab campaign is all about celebrating self-expression by inspiring Aussies... ...Read more »

The consumption of soft drinks and fruit juice in Australia declined in 2012, compared to figures from 2008, according to a recent study by market research organisation Roy Morgan Research. According the research, in the 12 months to December 2012, 57 per cent of Australians aged 14 and over consumed soft drinks in an average seven-day period, compared to 61 per cent in the year to December 2008. Consumption of fruit juices and drinks dropped from 41 per cent in the year to December 2008, to 33 per... ...Read more »

A New York judge has blocked the City Council’s ban on large servings of sweet soft drinks, mere hours before the restrictions were due to come into effect. Australian Food News reported in September 2012 that New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s policy against soft drinks had gained support from weight loss groups. In September 2012, the New York Board of Health had approved a restriction on soft drinks, which would ban the sale of the sugary drinks in containers larger than 16 ounces (470 mL)... ...Read more »

Popular soft drink Fanta has expanded its Australian range with three new flavours due to hit shelves this month. The new flavours will be Grape, Mango Passionfruit and a Limited Edition Sour Watermelon. The Grape and Mango Passionfruit flavours will be available in grocery stores in a 1.25 litre bottle, but the Sour Watermelon flavour will only be available in 450mL and 600mL bottles in corner stores and petrol stations for a limited time. “Whether you’re getting your Grape on, or passionate... ...Read more »

Coca-Cola Amatil, Schweppes and Lion have launched a Federal Court of Australia action to challenge the legal validity of the Northern Territory’s container deposit scheme. The beverage giants made an application to have the scheme removed in which they would no longer be required to pay the 10 cent refund per beverage container that is returned. A Coca-Cola Amatil (CCA) spokesperson said that if the application is successful, CCA will move “quickly” to reduce the prices of its Northern Territory... ...Read more »